a little more certainty about silvio berlusconi's plans, however. he gave an interview on the italian version of "breakfast tv" saying he will not stand in any further election. he effectively nominated someone like angelina as his successor. that has been one of the names of touted about. he said he wanted a generational change. the timetable is not certain. with the cost of borrowing for italy up to 7%, that crucial threshold. some analysts say it may cause the ecb causing its purchasing of italian debt to try to put pressure on them to get this bill through as quickly as possible. let's get this report from alan johnston. >> the agony of defeat. silvio berlusconi, italy's political magician, has just run out of tricks. he is reeling from a knockout blow delivered here. berlusconi has dominated italy's parliament for years. he must have known he was losing his grip. there were too many defections from his ranks. suddenly, it was clear that in this place, he had more enemies than friends. >> [speaking foreign language] >> what will happen is what b

then, ford silvio berlusconi, the ends may be near. veteran observers believe the berlusconi over really is drawing to a close. >> i think by now it is inevitable that his government will come to an end. it might not come to an end to day or even tomorrow, but it will be very soon. >> but it is worth remembering that silvio berlusconi has survived more than 50 votes of confidence in the past. he is a master at political dealmaking. even now, he might just find a way to battle on. bbc news, rome. >> if the reports are to be believed, mr. berlusconi spent the night, along with his supporters, phoning and trying to gather in the vote votes -- votes. oneus speak to two mp's -- from mr. berlusconi's own party, and another from the opposition party. as mr. bullock's -- has mr. berlusconi got the support he needs? >> i don't know. we will check it out today. it will either be either the numbers -- we could also have on certain numbers, and that would make it longer. i hope he will immediately have enough deputies to hold on. i think he will b

silvio berlusconi is now back here at his official residence. he says he took the decision for the good of the country and also to settle the financial markets. but questions remain about his departure, in particular, the timing. almost immediately, there were doubts as to how soon he would leave office and whether elections would follow. >> he has said it and should keep his word, but the time that this will happen -- well, it could take from two weeks to one month, depending on the political mood of the parliament and the technicalities of the lot. >> during the day, his allies remained fighting for him, while excepting his time was running out. >> how would you describe his state of mind at the moment? he is under great pressure. >> yes, the pressure is really hard. in my opinion, it is not justified. it is just too much. he is trying to do his best. this is the moment that he suffered his biggest blow. he said simply "we asked the prime minister to stand down. he had become famous for scandal and his battles with the court's. he was regarded

silvio berlusconi has been prime minister three times in the last 17 years. this has been a real era of silvio berlusconi. he has brought in a new era of italian politics. i think that people are relieved that all that has come with the last several months of italy being a source of international concern and speculation and perhaps a lack of respect about the capacity to sort themselves out. they are happy to be entering a new era with perhaps a new course of optimism. they are not under any illusion that this will be without pain for ordinary people. >> thank you for joining us. now to syria where there are friends accusations that the government has committed crimes against humanity. human-rights watch says they have found evidence of torture and unlawful killings in the city of palms -- homs. the organization says that syria should be returned to the international criminal court and have its membership in the arab league suspended. you might find some of these pictures disturbing. >> promises promises. a week after pledging to respect human rights, these w

silvio berlusconi is extremely combative. he says that he will come out fighting and that he has the numbers. that is what it boils down to as far as his supporters are concerned, there are 630 mp's in the lower house behind me and he thinks that he has 300 on his side. but should be extremely close. this is not a vote of confidence, but it could trigger one. this time people here seem to tinker this as more significance now that the international community is watching his every move so intensely. this may be different for the great political survivor. back to you in london. >> thanks very much. much more from italy throughout the day. now more. very high cost of borrowing. it's gone up again to another level. >> it is very expensive. many economists said it would be a problem once it got beyond 6%. if the financial markets perceive there's some sort of political cohesion, then they might move to push bond prices up, yields down, and then went italy refinances 300 billion euros next year, it would be cheaper to do that bad at

after that silvio berlusconi will step down. the italian president will then embark on consultations, decide what course of action he wants to take, whether it's to call for fresh elections or ask a member of the opposition, or whether it's to call some kind of technocratic government. again, that's something that will be decided later on by the italian president. nina. >> isn't there a bit of concern, matthew, though where you are in rome that even if they do get a technocratic government, there isn't the political will to put forward to implement these austerity measures? >> reporter: yeah, i think there is that concern. certainly if there is a technocratic government that's put in place, one that would depend on support from the current parliament, the divisions that have been so important in preventing the administration from passing the austerity measures that they wanted to get through would still be very much evident. it would mean the technocratic government might not be able to get anything done either, particularly for

although silvio berlusconi himself has resisted that option. it could be another formation of center right coalition partners without silvio berlusconi at the helm. there's all sorts of possibilities that could emerge if silvio berlusconi doesn't make it through his next confidence vote. but you know, i think what most people in italy are focused on, this is the sense i get from speaking to a lot of people over the course of the past week or so, is that they just want a change. they just want silvio berlusconi gone because first of all, they don't see him as a credible figure because of the personal scandals that have affected him so badly over the past several years, the sex scandals, corruption allegations. he's facing almost weekly court battles to defend himself legally in the courts. but also, the economists, many people here, don't see him as a credible figure to steer the country's economy through these difficult times. what most people want is simply a change at this point from silvio berlusconi. >> matthew chance joining us live from r

prime minister silvio berlusconi announced he will resign after a new budget law is approved. this comes after losing his majority in parliament earlier today. for more on this political bombshell, let's go live now to rome. >> you are in the heart of american politics and we are here in the heart of the italian politics. this is where the lower house of the italian parliament is and it was the scene of a sea of speculation before a vote which should have been a routine budget vote which became a decider for silvio berlusconi's an immediate political future. he went through with no majority, and i was the key. the vote went through, but he was severely wounded politically. he lost his majority and disappeared for an hour. u.s. and consultation with his political allies and an announcement he would see the president. after an hour, a statement came from the president's house, that he had accepted silvio berlusconi would hand in his resignation after the budget act was approved by the parliament here behind me. now we wonder how long it could be before berlusconi will resign and

if silvio berlusconi goes, will that fix the problem? >> if he goes -- and that is a big if -- he is bunker mode right now. if he goes, a huge thing will change. his successor probably will have to change the electoral law and have been support for year, year-and-a-half, and will be in a position to say, we need sacrifices'. we cannot retire at whatever. we need 67. we have to cut politics expenses. silvio berlusconi is in no position to ascospores sacrifices now. >> the markets will like it if he goes. but is seen not just a symptom of his own country? you write that he reflects an italian desire to break the rules, not pay tax is. >> thank you for quoting my book. silvio berlusconi could not be anything other than italian. but watch out. he represents some of the best and much of the worst of the italians. he never tries to improve or educate his donation. he only told us what we wanted to hear, ever. you tell your children exactly what they want to hear. oh, they are going to love you. he is not a leader. he is a ball or. he follows h

silvio berlusconi is to step down as italy's prime minister. he says he'll resign once parliament adopts reforms aimed at sorting out the country's finances. his announcement follows the vote on the parliament of the budget which he won but lost his majority. our europe editor has the details. after the vote in parliament, berlusconi went to see the italian president. they had a long discussion and then it was the president's office who declares that silvio berlusconi would step down after key economic reforms had been passed. earlier in the day the italian prime minister had left home knowing that some former allies and his enemies were closing in on him. determined to end his hold on power. in parliament he won the crucial vote but it was clear he no longer could depend on his own coalition to give him a majority. the result confirmed what the prime minister had feared, a significant number of m.p.'s within his own party had deserted him. and opposition leader addressing him directly said, hand in your resignation. >> tonight he said he was a

silvio berlusconi has been promised for three times in the past 17 years. he has brought a new style to italian politics. i think people are relieved that all of this has come with the last several months of italy being the focus of this international concern and speculation and flurry. i think that they are happy to be entering some kind of a new era with more cause for optimism. they are not under any illusions about the pain for ordinary people. >> thank you very much for joining us. now to syria where there are fresh accusations that the government there has committed crimes against humanity. human-rights watched says they have found evidence of torture and unlawful killings in the city of homs where people have repeatedly clashed with security forces. human-rights watch would like to deceit suspended. >> the cities and towns of syria remained killing zones. more than a week after the government promised the arab week -- the arab league that they would pull out all of their security forces. this is one of the skirmishes, one of many in recent days, that

is this the end of silvio berlusconi's political career? he has been quite a survivor until now. >> it does look like it, although i would not exclusive -- exclude a last-minute surprise. berlusconi is skillful politically and does not always follow tomorrow what he says he will do today. he has his back to the wall. after tonight's meeting with the italian president, there was a joint communique from the palace which is the official residence of the head of state. it will be difficult for mr. berlusconi to go back on that decision now. his resignation could come next week, when austerity measures and measures to stimulate economic growth are due to come before parliament for another vote. it could be within a relatively short time that we shall have negotiations beginning for a new government. >> berlusconi says he will stay on until the pushes the austerity package through parliament. can he do that now? >> it is doubtful. i think the pressure on italy will continue to grow over coming days. already, the latest quotations on italian bonds

under pressure, silvio berlusconi has put forward proposals to cut public spending. italians are finding some of these proposals difficult to swallow. >> his name is ambrose, he is 672 years old. his patron saint is not allowed to rest in peace. this is offered up as a sacrifice to help preserve the stability of the eurozone. >> they have always celebrated this with processions. now come under pressure from the european central banks, the italian government has proposed turning this into ordinary working days and that is causing quite a rally. >> the need for urgent reform is pretty clear. the economy is expected to contract next year by north of 2%. there public debt is 1.9 trillion euros. the borrowing costs have rose to 6.3%. this is regarded as unsustainable. >> the church cannot see how that affects ambrose. >> the italians are very hard working people. i don't think abolishing this is resulting in countries with economic problems. yes, you have to work, but you must celebrate, too. >> the battle over st. ambrose's day is just part of the soul-searching. the cou

. >> silvio berlusconi was once untouchable. a self-made man, a man from milan, struck his fortune by founding a media empire is worth about $9 billion. he is said to have hosted sex parties. then there is ruby -- he allegedly had sex with the dancer when she was 17. berlusconi left off but with each scandal, and politics became more of a laughing stock. leaders. european what brought him down was the economy. the italian slow growth, a huge debt, and it * ridiculous politics spooked international creditors. italians said a arrivederci and forth his resignation saturday night. to head off a financial catastrophe, italy appointed a new prime minister designate. could not be more different mario monti is a sober economist q. >> he promised to end the economic crisis with urgency and scruples. >> silvio berlusconi said he is not on the politics and has promised to double his efforts to reform the italian political system. >> now, your instaweather plus forecast with eva marie. >> we are keeping our eye on an area of showers up towa

they wanted to see the end of silvio berlusconi. his political career. they've been shouting abuse, they've been jeering, they've been shouting mafioso, calling for him to be arrested and put in jail. they've been calling him a joker, a fool. the insults have been hurling. at one point it got quite aggressive. i think clearly the decision was made by the security around silvio berlusconi that it would have been wrong from his security point of view to take him through these crowds, some of them very angry indeed. towards the man who has been so so influential in their politics. you can see now the anger that we witnessed earlier has turned to jubilation. how does it feel now that silvio berlusconi? >> today is the freedom day. today this is the freedom, the liberation for italy. now i'm very, very elated really. >> why is there so much celebrations in the streets tonight? >> 20 years. >> talk louder. i can't hear you. >> we have been -- 20 years. now it's time for a new politics. >> you feel you've been prisoners for so long. >> but we can change with mo

just a day after prime minister silvio berlusconi plans to resign, the cost of the borrowing has risen to a record level. markets around the world hated to the uncertainty. the dow fell almost 400 points. >> italy is in a full-blown political crisis with the country on the edge of a financial disaster. ministers met to discuss the bailouts which have caused other countries to seek a bailout. >> italy is seen as extremely weak politically. politically, this is seen as very weak and that is what markets do, they go after the weak ones. >> much of the focus has been on the presidential palace in rome, where the italian president stepping in to try to reassure financial markets. the president of the italian republic summit here today the finance minister and asked to see the economic proposals demanded by the economic union and the markets. the president stressed the importance of adopting these measures within a couple of days. president had to insist there would be no delay over economic reform. >> we need decisions quickly to give a new sense of responsibility and cohesion of the nation

just a day after prime minister silvio berlusconi plans to resign, the cost of the borrowing has risen to a record level. markets around the world hated to the uncertainty. >> italy is in a full-blown political crisis with the country on the edge of a financial disaster. this is why, on the international markets, it is borrowing costs have gone above 7%. this has forced other countries to seek a bailout. >> italy is seen as extremely weak politically. politically, this is seen as very weak and that is what markets do, they go after the weak ones. >> much of the focus has been on the presidential palace in rome, where the italian president stepping in to try to reassure financial markets. the president of the italian republic summit here today the finance minister and asked to see the economic proposals demanded by the economic union and the markets. the president stressed the importance of adopting these measures within a couple of days. president had to insist there would be no delay over economic reform. >> we need decisions quickly to give a new sense of responsibility and cohesion

. >> silvio berlusconi was forced to deny rumors on monday that he is bound to resign. he faces a growing rebellion within his own coalition that italy will go the way of greece. it all adds up to a major headache for european finance ministers meeting in brussels. >> regardless of who heads the new greek government, it seems clear that the finance minister will keep his post. he was in brussels looking for support. >> we have a new government of natural unity and natural irresponsibility. -- of national unity and national responsibility. >> crease urgently needs financial aid to keep the country -- greece urgently needs financial aid to keep the country running. athens will run out of money before the new year. the german finance minister is calling for a clear signal from the new coalition in athens. >> in the current situation, it is important that not just the government but also the opposition gets assurances that they will stick to the agreements. >> eurozone finance ministers want assurances from italy that it is serious about getting its debt under control. no f

they wanted to see the end of silvio berlusconi. his political career. they've been shouting abuse, they've been jeering, they've been shouting "mafioso," they've calling for him to be arrested and put in jail. they've been calling him a joker, a fool. the insults have been hurling. and at one point it got quite aggressive. so i think clearly the decision was made by the security around silvio berlusconi that it would have been wrong from his security point of view to take him through these crowds, some of them very angry indeed, towards the man who has been so, so influential in their politics. you can see now the anger that we witnessed earlier has turned to jubilation. how does it feel now that silvio berlusconi -- >> today, today is the freedom day! today this is the freedom, the liberation for italy. now i'm very, very elated really. >> why is there so much celebrations in the streets tonight? >> 20 years of -- >> talk louder. i can't hear you. >> we have been -- for 20 years. now it's time for a new politician -- for new politics. >> you feel you'v

when the lower house does the same, prime minister silvio berlusconi said he will resign, making way, it's assumed for this man -- the former european commissioner who will head a technocrat government. mario will be tasked with balancing italy's budget by 2014 to help contain euro's debt crisis. italian v.a.t. will go up to 21%. public sector salaries will be frozen for three years. there will be a crackdown on tax evasion. europe's leaders today welcomed the news. >> i'm very hopeful italy will sort out this situation quite soon. there recent news we have been receiving from italy go in that direction but i cannot respond for italy. >> in europe's other problem capital athens, there were more anti-austerity protests on the streets today. "i'm expecting further barbaric measures against the people" this woman said. here too a new government is being imposed on the country. another technocrat, lucas papademos, was sworn in today. his job, to force through more painful austerity measures demanded by brussels. here at the european commission there's a real sense greece and italy are doi

the demonstrators hope their insults would reach inside the palace as silvio berlusconi handed in his rehis resignation. when word came that deed was done and berlusconi was out they sang, danced, and toasted the end of the political career of a man many considered an embarrassment. >> reporter: berlusconi has just stepped down as italy's prime minister. and tonight thousands are saying good riddance. >> we're happy because we want a leader who is serious, who represents us. >> reporter: berlusconi was brought down by italy's economic crisis, not his many scandals or sex parties as he called them. in rome, earlier today, "hallelujah" one woman said. finally we got rid of him, agreed this man. for years berlusconi, a media tycoon worth $9 billion, seemed untouchable. he's been in court 2,500 times by his own count, accused of attempting to bribe a judge, corruption and abuse of power. there was ruby, the dancer he allegedly had sex with when she was only 17. berlusconi laughed it off, and ruby became a celebrity. many italians shrugged off the scandal. but they could not tolerate when

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silvio berlusconi giving into the pressure and stepping down. his resignation comes one day after italy's senate passed a new budget with critical spending cuts which ultimately helped that country dodge a full financial meltdown. investors likely to keep a close eye on italy in the coming days and weeks as the new government takes shape. no surprise there because, as europe's fourth largest economy italy's success could make or break a global recovery and impact the markets here at home. we have seen some of that already recently with greece. greg burke live tonight in rome with some the day's details. >> silvio berlusconi is a guy obsessed with image from the way he dresses, from the way his businesses are run. you can only think that he must really be terrible when he is thinking about the kind of exit he had to make tonight. he could have never planned something that bad. wild separations in rome. berlusconi is one of those politicians who people either love or hate. and left wingers who had been beaten so badly by him, so often over the pas

former eu commissioner mario monty is expected to take over for silvio berlusconi. monti would lead a unity government charged with tackling italy's debt crisis. >>> a u.s. soldier has been sentenced to life in prison by a military court. calvin gibbs was found guilty of murdering three afghan civilians. three members of his unit had already pled guilty. gibbs was accused of cuts off pieces of the corpses to keep as souvenirs and planting weapons to make it look as though the men were taliban fighters. gibbs will be eligible for parole in ten years. >>> in the turkish city, 28 people have been pulled alive from the rubble after a deadly earthquake wednesday night. rescue crews worked throughout the day, thursday, to reach people still trapped. dozens more may still be buried. the government says 260 survivors have been taken to other cities. the death toll stands at 12. >>> the murdoch media empire has been compared to the mafia. he said they adopted a code of silence surrounding the phone hacking scandal. murdoch rejetted the allegation when he appeared before mps

that a stairs he'll finally say oh it's silvio berlusconi's fate and he. down as prime minister of the country now for better or worse he was certainly a character and it's going to be a massive change now that he's resigned from the post optimism certainly for the future but what the future will be right now remains uncertain is that a caretaker government is going to be put in place the man is being paid for the top spot is very well respected economists here in the country mary months say he's the former commissioner he's a euro crowd he knows the system inside and out a good ling's of brussels there's certainly a question mark over whether he's going to have the democratic legitimacy that is needed to gain public support of course or an unelected government taking the reins does raise a lot of questions these are just the initial steps and was is a short term measure certainly going to go some way to standing that panic that we saw at the beginning of the week and to calming somewhat the fear that it's the was literally about to be sucked into that spi

silvio berlusconi steps down in italy as cheering crowds take to the streets. our own richard engle is there. >>> debate night in south carolina. the first showdown since rick perry's awkward moment as newt gingrich soars in the polls >>> and rescue mission. tonight inside the daring operation to save a kidnapped tonight inside the daring operation to save a kidnapped baseball star. captions paid for by nbc-universal television >>> good evening. on a fall saturday afternoon in state college, pennsylvania, there's usually nothing more important than penn state football. but the sea of blue that filled the stadium stands today worn by fans in solidarity with the victims of sexual abuse said it all as the legendary nittany lions lost their first game in 46 years without coach joe paterno. today was penn state's first home game since the sickening allegations of child sexual abuse by former defensive coordinator jerry sandusky. and accusations of coverup against those who should have known better, costing coach paterno among others their jobs. 17-14 loss to nebrask

all this pressure on silvio berlusconi. there's pressure on him to resign periodically for any number of scandals that he's involved in, but this is a bond market, these are investors in the world looking at this potentially as the next.c domin. what's happening there? >> you couldn't have asked for more if you had just written a book on the subject to have governmental collapses in greece and italy, the cradles of western civilization. the italian case, it's clear, it's the end of the line for berlusconi, because he seems to be standing between italy and the kind of reforms they have to make, if international investors are to be reassured. italy's borrowing costs are up where portugal's and greece's and spain's were before they got into dire straits. so it was high time he left. he should have gone long ago to make way for somebody more credib credible. >> at this hour, he is still holding on. >> in classic fashion. >> i'll tell you, this is the third largest economy in europe. this isn't a greece. >> no. >> italy is somet